Yuanchuavis

Yu-an-chu-a-viss.
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Benjamin Gutierrez

Vertebrate Paleontologist

Benjamin Gutierrez is a leading expert on dinosaurs, particularly the mighty theropods. His fieldwork in South America has uncovered new species and provided insights into dinosaur social structures.

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Name

Yuanchuavis ‭(‬Yuanchu bird‭)‬.

Phonetic

Yu-an-chu-a-viss.

Named By

Min Wang,‭ ‬Jingmai K.O’Connor,‭ ‬Tao Zhao,‭ ‬Yanhong Pan,‭ ‬Xiaoting Zheng,‭ ‬Xiaoli Wang‭ & ‬Zhonghe Zhou‭ ‬-‭ ‬2021.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Dinosauria,‭ ‬Theropoda,‭ ‬Avialae,‭ ‬Enantiornithes,‭ ‬Pengornithidae.

Diet

Uncertain.

Species

Y.‭ ‬kompsosoura‭

Size

Unavailable.

Known locations

China‭ ‬-‭ ‬Jiufotang Formation.

Time Period

Early Cretaceous.

Fossil representation

Almost complete individual preserved on a slab.

In Depth

       Yuanchuavis is a genus of enantiornithine bird that lived in Asia during the early Cretaceous.‭ ‬Yuanchuavis‭ ‬is confirmed to have had two elongated retrices‭ (‬flight feathers‭) ‬in the tail.‭ ‬Melanosome sampling of the holotype fossil suggests that the elongated‭ ‬retrices would have been black in life,‭ ‬while the remaining tail feathers either iridescent or dark grey

Further reading

-‭ ‬An Early Cretaceous enantiornithine bird with a pintail.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Current Biology.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Min Wang,‭ ‬Jingmai K.O’Connor,‭ ‬Tao Zhao,‭ ‬Yanhong Pan,‭ ‬Xiaoting Zheng,‭ ‬Xiaoli Wang‭ & ‬Zhonghe Zhou‭ ‬-‭ ‬2021.

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